From today's
Phoenix editorial:
This is the country we
live in: not a single Wall Street executive has been indicted for
crashing the world economy and gaming the financial system out of
multi-billions in order to rip off an entire generation of
hard-working Americans. Yet the United States Department of Justice,
through the agency of its Boston US Attorney, saw fit — as a matter
of routine practice — to legally pursue a young, idealistic
Internet activist and internationally known computer scientist, Aaron
Swartz, with a heavy-handed perseverance that can only be called sick
and perverted. After a sadistic persecution by the office of US
Attorney Carmen Ortiz and prosecutors Steve Heymann and Scott
Garland, the 26-year-old Swartz hanged himself in his Brooklyn
apartment on January 11 . . .
. . . The case against
Swartz — based on a narrow, almost unreasonable reading of the
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act — was hardly airtight. Swartz was
accused of downloading, without authorization, a huge cache of
scholarly articles from a nonprofit company, JSTOR. Contrary to what
has been reported elsewhere, Swartz did not hack into the system —
at least not as the term is widely understood . . .
As such, for those and other reasons, outraged and
sympathetic members of Anonymous – you might have heard of them –
will demonstrate tomorrow, Friday, January 25th, outside
of the federal courthouse in Boston. Excerpt from the press release
below. This is no permit for this rally, but it's safe to predict
that there will be some serious numbers in attendance . . .
On January 11, 2013
the world and the web lost a hero. His name is Aaron Swartz and he
was a gifted thinker, skilled programmer, writer and political
activist who believed in the freedom of information for all.
Unfortunately, it was that belief that led to his unfair prosecution
by the Massachusetts Department of Justice. Aaron simply wanted to
make free information and publicly funded research widely available
to all. Any crime he may have committed was victimless and
non-malicious. Despite this, the United States Department of Justice
led by Carmen Ortiz and Stephen Heymann harshly prosecuted Aaron with
trumped up charges based on ridiculous interpretations of the
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. In the last days of his life Aaron
faced up to 35 years in prison and over $1 million dollars in fines
on 13 felony charges. His family and attorney both say that bullying
from federal prosecutors contributed to his untimely death.
On January 25,
2013, we will hold a peaceful protest to bring
#JusticeforAaronSwartz. If you believe in the freedom of information
and condemn the gross misconduct with which the US Department of
Justice acted, please join us. Together we can stand together and let
our government know that federal bullying WILL NOT be
tolerated.
Friday is your chance to help start to fill the
void left by Aaron Swartz. He is no longer here to help pioneer the
way but has left us a rich legacy with the tools and ideals necessary
to do so. We will not be silenced as he was and we have the ability
to continue his work in providing open access for all.
Please remember
that this is a peaceful gathering to honor Aaron. See below for more
info. Act respectively and do not block streets, doorways, or
sidewalks. Remember that we will be on federal ground and we do not
need more arrests among our Anonymous friends and affiliates.
We are Anonymous.
We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us.
Where:
John Joseph Moakley Courthouse
1
Courthouse Way, Boston, MA 02210
When:
Friday, January 25th at 3pm
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